Iconic flower shows postponed for a year

Belgium’s iconic flower show Floralies of Ghent was due to be held from 1 May to 10 May. The aim is to organise the event in April/May 2021. Meanwhile, the UK’s Royal Horticulture Society announced that seven of its flower shows, including the iconic Chelsea Flower Show, ‘will regrettably no longer take place in 2020.

This spring’s Ghent Flower Show/Floralies of Ghent has been postponed until 2021, the Royal Society for Agriculture and Botany (KMLP) has decided, as it contemplates the unprecedented disruption amid the outbreak of the coronavirus outbreak.

Following the Boris Johnson’s Government update on 16 March 2020 and ongoing situation with COVID-19, all RHS Shows, Garden Events and school visits will be cancelled with immediate effect until 30 June 2020.  RHS Gardens remain open, with a number of increased precautionary measures in place.

RHS says “this is a worldwide unprecedented and challenging time for so many people and of course the health and safety of our members, visitors, exhibitors and staff remains our number one priority.”

With the Government no longer supporting mass gathering events due to the impact on emergency services and heightened actions to encourage social distancing, the following RHS Shows will regrettably no longer take place in 2020:

• RHS London Spring Launch & Orchid Show, 7-8 April
• RHS Botanical Art and Photography Show, 17-18 April
• RHS Flower Show Cardiff, 17-19 April
• RHS Malvern Spring Festival, 7–10 May
• RHS Chelsea Flower Show, 19–23 May
• RHS Chatsworth Flower Show, 11–14 June
• RHS Garden Harlow Carr Flower Show, 26-28 June, (although we will investigate if Harlow Carr can be moved into July)

RHS will contact everyone who has purchased a ticket and everyone will have the option of a full refund back within 21 days. Please therefore do not contact us immediately, except in an emergency, so that we can continue to handle this situation as swiftly as possible.

RHS will be contacting everyone involved in the Shows about the cancellation of these events.

One of the many reasons RHS cannot postpone any of these large events to later in the year is that most of the thousands of plants grown for these shows are chosen because they are at their best in spring.